Where Are Gondwana Rainforests?

Subtropical rainforest was the typical vegetation of Gondwana. The characteristic fossil plants of Gondwana have been found in the Permian rocks of South America, South Africa, India, Australia and Antarctica. Much of the original rainforest has been replaced by other vegetation types, partly because of climate change, as parts of Gondwana drifted northwards into areas of lower rainfall, and southwards, into colder climes, and also because of logging and extensive clearing for food and commercial crops. Gondwanan rainforest can still be found along the south-east coast of South Africa, in Madagascar, India, Sri Lanka, New Caledonia, Papua-New Guinea, south-eastern Australia, in New Zealand, and southern Chile, almost always in disconnected pockets. Few places on earth contain so many plants and animals that remain relatively unchanged from their ancestors in the fossil record.